


we might as well be

by mysterytwin



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Lots of it, Soulmate AU, Wonder Woman inspired, and lots of hugging, let them be happy, starco
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-17
Updated: 2017-06-17
Packaged: 2018-11-15 01:17:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11220237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mysterytwin/pseuds/mysterytwin
Summary: Everyone knows that when Star Butterfly falls, she falls hard — and fast. She falls like a shooting star, leaving traces of it in the sky, but very easy to miss. Sometimes it’s obvious, but when she truly falls — when her heart can’t seem to stop falling from the sky — it’s the most silent and quickest thing there’s ever been.But for Marco Diaz, it’s a whole different story. He falls slowly, like the sun as it falls on the horizon. It’s warm and soft around the edges, but ever present. He falls gently, giving enough time to know what he’s getting into and to accept it, waiting for the stars to appear out before he’s finally in love.And sometimes, the shooting star burns out before the sun can even be given the chance to fall.





	we might as well be

Everyone knows that when Star Butterfly falls, she falls hard — and  _ fast.  _ She falls like a shooting star, leaving traces of it in the sky, but very easy to miss. Sometimes it’s obvious, but when she truly falls — when her heart can’t seem to stop falling from the sky — it’s the most silent and quickest thing there’s ever been. 

But for Marco Diaz, it’s a whole different story. He falls slowly, like the sun as it falls on the horizon. It’s warm and soft around the edges, but ever present. He falls gently, giving enough time to know what he’s getting into and to accept it, waiting for the stars to appear out before he’s finally in love. 

And sometimes, the shooting star burns out before the sun can even be given the chance to fall. 

 

 

* * *

 

 Marco knows where the story begins. 

He knows it starts with a blue-eyed girl with a fascination with the non-magic workings of Earth. It starts with a hug in the middle of a convenience store, a bowl of nachos while a movie plays before them, and a magic wand that can shoot narwhals. 

 But there’s a prologue to this story, and it happens seven years beforehand, in a dimly-lit room with the words of a made-fairytale ghosting around each corner. 

And it starts with a princess. 

It’s the usual story out of a children’s book — but there’s a twist. Maria Diaz sits on one end of the bed, her grandson curled up at her side, holding onto every word she says. Oh, how she loves adding her own twists to the stories, loves watching the surprise appear on her little Marco’s face every time. 

And tonight, she would tell him about soulmates.

“The Princess was a beautiful, young thing, with long blonde hair and light blue eyes. Everyone in the kingdom loved her, especially her parents. And her future was set in stone: she would rule the kingdom one day, with a gentle hand and a magic wand. She would marry, too, of course, a young gentleman who understood in more ways that one — her soulmate. Everyone in the kingdom had one, and a certain set of words would appear on their wrist, and whoever said those words would be their soulmate. But the Princess didn’t have any words. There wasn’t a single letter on her wrist, and she grew to be very worried about it. Only the King, Queen, and Princess herself knew about it, and they would never tell a single soul in fear of rejection and criticism.” Maria settles into a brief silence, letting her grandson understand the words before continuing. 

“Then what happened?” Marco’s eyes shine bright, warm and soft. 

 She smiles, crinkles appearing at the corners of her eyes. “And then a boy appeared. He was a handsome, brave warrior from a distant land, and he had captured the heart of the Princess. The two fell in love.”

 “But did — did the warrior have words on his wrist?” he asks, his voice small. “Were they soulmates?”

Maria smiles at him wistfully and takes his hand. “Not exactly, mijo. You’ll see why in a while. You see, as the Princess and the warrior fell in love, an enemy attacked the kingdom. The King and Queen were terrified and trapped, so it was up to the Princess to save everyone. She could do it; she had a magic wand. But it was not enough. She tried her best, fought with all her might, but she could not take down the enemy. And her lover, the warrior from a distant land, looked to her and told her one thing. With a small, sad smile, he raised his sleeve and showed her the words on his wrist —  _ You are my only one _ . These were the very words the Princess had told him the day before. And thus—”

“They were soulmates,” he whispers, his eyes wide with wonder. “Half-soulmates.”

“Yes,” Maria nods. “They were half-soulmates. And like all soulmates, they loved their partner very much — so much so, that they were willing to risk their very lives for one another.”

The young boy gasps, tugging the dress of his grandmother. “No,” he says. “No, they can’t. They’re supposed to live happily ever after!”

She presses a light kiss to his head. “The story’s not over yet, little one.” Marco waits for her to continue. “So the warrior fought alongside the Princess until his very last breath, until they won. She cradled his body in her arms, and tears streamed down her face. And as his eyes fluttered close, he whispered to her, ‘You are my only one, I love you.’ The Princess mourned for several years; she never forgot him. She never would, because he was her soulmate, even if she had nothing on her wrists. He was hers and she was his. Only when the Princess died did she finally reunite with her lover. The end.”

Marco nestles between her side and her arm. Softly, he asks, “Was abuelo your soulmate?”

Maria nods, and hums a tune to get him to fall asleep. Her eyes wander over the bare skin on Marco’s arm. “You will meet your soulmate one day, Marco. And they will be beautiful and will love you no matter what.”

The real story begins with a burning rainbow and an everlasting rain cloud. Then a monster fight, a hug, and a walk down the streets. It begins with friendship and magic. It begins with a magical princess from another dimension. 

 It begins with Star Butterfly. 

 She storms into his life without leaving either of them a choice, and makes the most out of all of it. She teaches him things, shows him the world through a different pair of eyes, and takes him on adventures he would never go on alone. She is his thunderstorm, his hurricane, and his sun rise all in one. She is his best friend. 

And their friendship doesn’t stop growing. 

 He loses her to her Mewberty, and there has never been a deeper hole in his chest cut with purple hearts this painful before. His heart stops when he loses her, the one person who brought him to crazy dimensions and became his best friend.  He’s relieved when she comes back, and he hugs her, because he’s not sure what he would’ve done without her. It’s only been two, three months with her, but it feels like he’s known her his whole life. 

 Blood Moon Ball, he dances by her side under a red light he doesn’t understand, and argues with her under the moonlight. He just wants to keep her safe, wrap her around in blankets so she never has to get hurt by Tom ever again (she tells him of their break-up after dinner: it involved messy tears and lots and lots of tissues). And he decides to just let her do these things on her own — he’ll be there if she ever needs a hand to hold. 

 A lazy Saturday afternoon with ice cream and a movie marathon brings up a question Marco’s been wondering about, and he hopes she won’t find it offensive or anything. 

 “Do you have soulmates on Mewni?” 

Star pauses between another spoonful of ice cream to look at him. “Soulmates? What’s a soulmate?”

 Marco rubs the back of his neck. That’s a no, then. “You know,” he starts to say, which is stupid, because she obviously _doesn’t_ know, and that’s why she’s asking him, “they’re the one person who understands you more than anyone. They’ll have your back, and you’ll have theirs. They change you for the better. You can have more than one sometimes, but some people never find their soulmates at all.”

 “Oh,” she says simply. Biting her wand, she adds, “How do you know? If they’re your soulmate?”

Marco shrugs. “Your soulmate will say a bunch of words, and if those words appear on your wrist, they’re your soulmate. For example, if I said ‘ice cream is amazing,’ and those words appear on your wrist right now, then that’s how you’d know I’m your soulmate. Does that make sense?”

“Oh, totally, totally, totally,” she says, nodding. Star stares at her wrist. “We…don’t have that on Mewni.”

“It’s okay,” Marco tells her softly. “I’m sure you’ll find the person for you all on your own. You’re Star Butterfly.”

“Yeah,” she says, as her lips twist into a smile while gaining more confidence. “Yeah. I am.”

Marco smiles at her, watching her focus her attention back on the movie. His eyes linger at his own wrist, the bare skin taunting him. He sighs — is he ever going to find his soulmate?

Three days later, they argue over a stupid sandwich and Marco gets himself kidnapped. How, he’s not so sure himself, but he let his guard down, he was just so — so  _ angry _ at Star. So  _ hurt _ by her words that he couldn’t even defend himself. Toffee — is that his name? — shakes his head at him and calls him a disappointment. What?

Star comes in to storm the castle a little later, and he knows — he  _ knows  _ that his life is less important than her wand — but he can’t help himself from crying out as the glass starts to crush him, and he’s running out of air, and he’s going to die, and — and—

The glass reopens and he’s about to stand up to run to her and hug her because he sure as hell wasn’t worthy enough that she would destroy his wand  _ for him _ , but she did — and now she’s shoving him back into the glass cell. 

It’s a good thing it’s unbreakable. 

And he lets himself melt in her arms, to say thank you, I’m sorry, and you’re my best friend. 

He makes her another sandwich that night when they get home, and she grins at him. He feels a little guilty when he looks at her wand, but she places a hand on his shoulder to reassure him when she sees his gaze. Another hug, and Marco feels a little better. 

It’s not even a day later when Marco gets himself trapped in a closet with Star’s wand, spellbook — and worst of all: Glossaryk. He finds her journal a little too late, and his eyes are stuck on the words,  _ My thoughts on Marco _ to even think about anything else. His only regret is that he wished he saw Star dip down for the first time. It had gotten chilly when she had.

And there’s another kidnapping, but this time it’s Tom who does it. They talk about Star, and through slim hope and an awful game of ping pong, Marco manages to persuade him to let him go. 

 He comforts Star, telling her that she’s going to rule Mewni her way, no matter how destructive, and they hug. She’s going to be an awesome queen — he can feel it in his bones. There’s no denying it. He only hopes that they’ll still be friends by that time; judging by how busy Star’s mom is, who knows if they’ll be able to keep in touch. 

(but they have to. he doesn’t know what he’ll do without her.)

He teaches her how to bike about a month later, and every single part of him is regretting letting go of the seat because she’s in  _ danger _ because of him. The point of her living with him is so she can be safe — she’s on Earth to be  _ safe _ , and now—

 It’s all his fault. 

Stupid invisible goat, he thinks, but he manages to catch up to her.

 “Thanks, Marco,” she says over the wind while taking his hand. “But you believing in me is all I need.” Star lets go, and he feels himself smiling against everything else. 

 When Star disappears, Marco’s worried sick. He runs home and starts printing flyers, calling her phone, and looking for her everywhere. He tells the police ( _yes, she’s been missing for more than twenty-four hours; yes, that’s her real name, I swear; no, she’s not my girlfriend or my sister; no, I’m not direct family, but please, just find her, she’s my best friend, and I don’t know what to do without her_ ) and ignores the part of his brain telling him that she’s gone for good. She’s not. She’s okay. She’s out there, somewhere. She can handle herself. She’s Star Butterfly, for crying out loud. 

So he waits. He waits in the police office, hoping she’ll be there. He didn’t get much sleep the night before, so he accidentally dozes off, her flyers still in his hands. When he  _ does _ wake up, he almost thinks that he’s imagining things, but she’s  _ there _ . And she’s okay — just like he knew she would be. 

“Star! You’re okay!” he says as he goes over to hug her. “We were so worried!”

Because he was and dammit — he’s never going to lose her again. He doesn’t think he’ll be able to handle it. 

(it also turns out, she really  _ can _ pull of jumpsuit orange.)

 He takes her camping on time, and her father tags along, and it shouldn’t really bother him — well, it _doesn’t_ , but he really wanted to show Star Old Youthful. And maybe it’s not the most extravagant thing on Earth, but it’s what he has as of this moment. He’s also learned not to underestimate the small piece of nature. So. 

 Marco can only hope his best friend sees, knows, _understands_ how much she means to him, how much he appreciates all she’s done for him. He wants to show her what he can, for he can only hope that it can amount equal to all she’s shown him. 

 Old Youthful, as always, is beautiful. 

Two weeks later, and he finally tells Jackie he has a crush on her. He’s never told anyone, but he always holds his breath every time he’s around her, whenever she says something, something in his chest tightens, and he always,  _ always _ resists the urge to check his wrist if any words have appeared. So far into the night, there’s nothing. 

Like always. 

So he’s a little dozed when he watches Jackie skateboard away, his chest warm at her acceptance. Jackie is giving him a chance. A shot in the dark, whatever it may be, he’s going to take it. 

(he doesn’t hear Star’s words, and his world is a little bit tipsy, but he’ll come around again and they can eat nachos later.)

(they don’t. he’s still dazed three days after.) 

 He snaps out of in a week, a little more focused on the world around him. And it just so happens that when he _does_ decide to focus on the world around him, he’s about to die. 

 But hey, he wouldn’t choose to die with anyone else but Star Butterfly. 

“Star’s my best friend,” he says loudly. “And friendship is the greatest gift I could ever receive.”

 The smile on her face is worth more than anything Quest Buy could ever give him. 

 He hugs her and shuts his eyes, ready to take the fall. 

But there’s nothing, and as much as Marco’s relieved, he’s still glad that he got to spend another day with her — even if they  _ did _ almost die. 

When Marco (sort of) confesses to Jackie via Naysaya, he’s not sure if he’s going to die of a heart attack that she asked him to the movies or embarrassment now that she knows all his insecurities. Probably the former, but whatever. It’s totally worth it.  

His first real date with Jackie Lynn Thomas has his world spinning and his ground breaking. He lingers on every word she says, etching it to memory in case anything appears on his arm later. He really hopes she’s his soulmate. He hopes, he hopes, he hopes. 

Then — Star leaves him fifty-two missed calls and all hell breaks lose. Ludo attacks, and Star almost gets sucked into a portal to nowhere. 

“Marco, let go! You’ll get pulled in, too!”

“I’m not letting go!”

 And he doesn’t. He never will. 

After he makes sure she’s okay, he turns to Jackie and apologizes for the night. It went wrong so quickly, but Jackie keeps a smile on her face. She’s too good for him. 

 Star cries and he hugs her, holds her until she feels better. When he takes her back home, she locks herself in her room. He knocks at her door, but there’s never a reply. 

He can’t imagine what she must be feeling — so he just hopes he’ll let her be by her side. Marco sits at her door for the rest of the night, a bowl of nachos for two resting on his lap. 

(he forgets to check his wrist for any words, but he figures Star is more important.)

When the door opens in the morning, he scrambles up and hugs her again. She cries a little into his jacket, hugs him a little tighter, but she gives him a small smile afterwards. He really hopes she’ll be okay.  

And he’ll stay with her, no matter how long it will take. 

Marco doesn’t stop being worried for her, though. When he takes a glance through the door to see what she’s doing, he sees himself. He sees her wand casting a dark violet spell that can only mean one thing: dark magic. 

She brushes him off when she asks where she learned it, but he doesn’t press. He leaves the room so she can find Glossaryk, but the look on her face when she comes out is enough to tell him that whatever she was doing didn’t work out. 

So he tries his best to be there for her when she tells her parents. He’s just there, and he hopes it will be enough for now. 

Baby comes around about a week later, and there’s a pit in his stomach when Star tells him that there’s a chance she could go home. He doesn’t want that to happen — he doesn’t think he ever would. He needs her. She’s his best friend. 

The tree grows with the apple, and Star passes the test. He hugs her, saying, “I knew you’d do great,” and she smiles. 

 Marco feels better — _she’s_ getting better.

And that’s all he needs for now. 

The incident with Heckapoo goes by too quickly for sixteen years (eight minutes, actually), and something in Marco has changed. His wrist is still empty with no sign of words. He doesn’t remember his password, doesn’t remember what his favorite cereal tasted like, and doesn’t know how to do his math homework anymore. 

But he remembers Star. 

And she helps him adjust back to his normal life again. She tells him about what they used to do like it’s no big deal (it  _ is _ , because best friends aren’t supposed to forget things like Friendship Thursday), and she helps him get through the day. She’s the best friend a guy could ever have. And he’s eternally grateful for her. 

He also comes to remember Miss Heinous and his alter ego, Princess Marco. Marco isn’t lying when he — she? — says that it’ll take a lot more to break the spirit of a princess — he’s learned it by experience. 

 He’s also lot worried when Star tells him that she bought tickets from all _three_ of them to the Love Sentence concert — Jackie included. He’s not cool like Star, and Jackie’s finally going to see that. 

But everything gets worse before it gets better, and they’re all having fun at the concert until—

Well. Until the kiss. 

He follows Star and she excuses herself with a forced smile through gritted teeth, but Marco doesn’t notice any of that. 

 “What are friends for?”

 Marco smiles and wraps her in a tight embrace. “You’re the best friend a guy could have.”

“Yeah,” she says, as she lets go. “Now go be with your girlfriend. She’s waiting.”

And Marco does, and it’s one of the best night of his life. 

Surprisingly enough, he also gets invited to sit with the Butterfly Family during Star’s Song Day, which is odd, considering he’s  _ human _ and without a single trace of royalty within him. But hey, he’s not one to complain. The view is great. 

But then — then Ruberiot sings about  _ him _ and Star and all goes to hell in a handbasket. He couldn’t be saying the truth…could he? Could Star really…? No. She couldn’t. They’re best friends. 

Right?

She leaves before he can say anything, and the next time he sees her is at home in the late afternoon. He can’t bring himself to face her. Not now. Not after… _that_.

They mostly avoid each other after Song Day, even as school lets out on the last day. 

His parents decide to throw an end-of-the-year party, and that’s when he sees her next. They do a weird handshake-slash-fist bump type of thing, and run away. 

Marco can’t shake off the awkwardness and dammit, he wants it  _ gone _ . It’s just Star. He should be  _ able  _ to talk to her; he should be able to know what she’s feeling — they’re not best friends for  _ nothing _ . But he doesn’t know, and she disappears into the crowd before he can gather up his courage to face her again.

She does return, though, and she takes his hand (like old times) and leads him to somewhere more quiet. They talk for a while, trying to shake off the awkward air, but it’s useless. It doesn’t leave. 

He rubs the back of his neck. “But…do you have a crush on me?”

“Uh…I…” she trails. Then, she meets his eyes. “No. I don’t.”

“But the song—”

 “Marco, you’re my friend,” she tells him. “And I just want to have an awesome summer with my friend.”

He smiles, a little relieved, but a lot more confused. “Friend?”

“Friend.” The hug again, just like always. Because it’s him and her against the world, just like always. 

Marco loses himself in the crowd again, finding Ferguson and Alfonzo and catching up with them. It’s been awhile since they spoke, and he feels bad about it. 

He’s about to reply to their conversation about the newest nacho restaurant when—

“Marco!”

It’s Star, eyes frantic and hands clenching the railing of the staircase. 

 “Star?”

“Marco, we need to talk.” She walks up to him, just after he pushes himself out of the crowd. “Just one last time.”

“Is everything okay? You shouted pretty loud. Everyone’s just staring at us,” he says. 

“Yeah, I know. But some stuff just came up, and I’ve only got a little time,” she explains quickly.

“What? Why? We got the entire summer.”

“Marco, I don’t know how to tell you this, because you’re my best friend—”

“Star?”

 “—and that makes this super weird because—”

 “What’s wrong?”

“—because I...I…” she stammers. “I do have a crush on you.”

Something in Marco’s heart drops, while another part feels like…bursting? His cheeks are hot, he can feel them, but — why? Something in his arm is stinging, but maybe it’s just another mosquito bite. All he can focus on is  _Star_.

“I didn’t want to admit it because I know you don’t feel the same way, and I thought if I just pretended the feelings weren’t there, they’d go away. But they haven’t,” she takes a deep breath as she pauses. “I have to leave Earth, probably forever, and I couldn’t go without telling you the truth.”

And the world just _breaks_.  

Star is crying, and then she’s running away, and “Goodbye! Goodbye, everyone!”

And Marco has to force his feet to start moving again, and he runs after her because  _ dammit _ , he promised himself he wouldn’t lose her again and here she is, slipping right through his fingers, and—

 “Star! What do you mean—”

 It’s gone. Her bed, her fish tank, her mirror, her entire room is all _gone_. 

She’s gone. 

 Star Butterfly left Earth. 

 And he didn’t even get to say goodbye. 

Marco is lying on his bed three hours later, his thoughts whirring fast and loud — enough to know that he isn’t going to get much sleep. There’s a hole in his chest, clawing at his heart until he can’t take it anymore — and there are tears pricking at his eyes, hot and stinging. He wipes them away with his  bare arm, and he’s about to wipe it off on his shirt when he sees—

_ I do have a crush on you. _

And the words stare back at him, black print and clear as day. And he knows  _ exactly _ who said them. 

  _we spiraled high on a gust of love_

Marco can’t breathe suddenly, and he can’t seem to stop staring at the words, can’t seem to stop replaying the earlier events over and over again until it feels all too real, can’t seem to stop thinking of her and her bright blue eyes and her pretty smile and her laugh — oh dear god, her _laugh_ — and _Star_ _is his soulmate._

_ and I knew right from the start _

Star is his soulmate. His best friend. The one person who changed his life and turned it upside down. He sort of wants to laugh at the irony — how oblivious could he have been? A soulmate is someone who helps you become a better person, and that’s what exactly what Star did. Because she was his best friend — and soulmate. 

_ nothing could tear us apart _

He can only hope that he did that same to her. He hopes she’s okay, wherever she is. She can handle herself. She’s Star Butterfly. His soulmate. She can do anything. She’s a rebel princess.

_ ‘till the day you broke my heart _

His soulmate was right next to him all along, and he didn’t even know it. And now it’s too late. 

_ and now it’s too little too late _

Marco knows where their story begins. 

But he doesn’t know where it ends. 

 

 

* * *

 

It’s the middle of a war. 

Mewni is at war with the monsters, and there’s only so much a young princess who doesn’t even know basic magic can do. 

Okay, so maybe she doesn’t know basic magic. But she  _ does _ know advanced magic. That has to count for something, right?

 And so she runs and runs, blasting monsters left and right, kicking her way through those who try to trap her. She fights until she’s panting because her life is at stake here — the kingdom is at stake, and she can’t afford to lose. 

Her parents are…somewhere. She hasn’t seen them in an hour or two, but she knows that they’re somewhere. They’re still alive. She knows that much. Because it takes a lot more to take down Moon and River Butterfly. 

 And the same thing has to apply to their daughter. It does.

Then suddenly, amidst all the fighting, a hand makes contact with her own — and it feels…human. Or, at least, Mewman. But it’s not the slimy, oddly-shaped ones she’s used to grabbing her, so it’s not a monster. It makes her turn around, spinning her, and the sensation feels oddly familiar. 

And so is the face. 

“ _ Marco _ ?” she exclaims, very much surprised. She snatches her hand away from his. “What are you doing here?”

Star moves behind him to punch a monster trying to sneak up on him. It’s knocked to the ground, unconscious. 

“You’re—” she says as she continues to beat a monster. “supposed — Narhwal Blast! — to be on Earth! What the heck are you doing here?”

Marco fights off two other monsters, his back to hers, like old times. “I needed to see you again, Star! Especially after—” He stumbles a bit, taking a hit to the shoulder. Using his palms, he shoves the monster to the ground. “Especially after what you said!”

“Now’s not the time for this!” 

Most monsters in the area have been knocked unconscious, but there’s plenty more places to fight. The waves of enemy are limitless. The princess is tired; she’s been fighting all day. 

Marco grabs her by the shoulders. “Then when is the time? Never?”

Star grunts. “Anytime but now!”

He wants to say something else, but the ground rumbles beneath their feet — and something appears on the horizon. 

 Toffee. And he’s carrying a _wand_.

“Oh no,” Star mutters. “No, no, no, Mom was supposed to stop him—”

“ _ Toffee _ ?” Marco shouts. “You didn’t tell me Toffee came back!”

“I didn’t have the time!” Star says before grabbing his hand and tugging him into the bushes. 

“Well—”

“Shh!” she tells him in a hushed whisper. And he does. “Listen, Marco. If Toffee sees you, he could take you again! I can’t let him do that! I can’t lose you again!”

“I can’t lose you, either, Star!”

That, apparently, gets her to stop talking. Star blinks at him and doesn’t say anything. 

Marco stares at Toffee up ahead. “Star, I can distract him while you take the wand. Without it, he’s nothing but brains. Still dangerous, but yeah.”

“What? No! He could hurt you!” Star objects, taking his wrist as if to keep him from running into the battlefield. 

“But it’s our only shot, Star!”

“I’m not going to let you risk your life for me!”

He only stares at her. Taking a deep breath, he lifts the sleeve of his jacket up to reveal the words written on his wrist. 

Star gasps, recognizing the words. “Wait, does that mean—”

“Yes,” he confirms. “Star, you’re my soulmate. I might not be yours, but you’re mine. And my grandma once told me that soulmates are willing to risk their lives for one another. And I am. You’re my best friend, Star. I care about you more than you know. You’ve done so much for me, and I’ll never be able to repay you. So let me do this for you. You’re my soulmate.”

“No, Marco—”

He hugs her one last time, savoring her touch. “I can help save Mewni today, but you’re going to rule it, and that’s what makes you more important than anyone else. I just wish we had more time as soulmates. You’re my best friend, Star, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I love you.”

And then he’s off onto the battlefield, running as fast as his legs can take him. But then he slows down, his body slants, almost as if he’s going to turn around and look at her one more time. But he doesn’t. He doesn’t because if he does, he knows  that all his bravery will fade with one look at her. So continues to run, shouting at Toffee and dodging his attacks. Star makes her feet move and crawls to an angle where Toffee wouldn’t be able to see her approaching. 

And then it happens. 

He makes eye contact with her from behind Toffee, and he gives her a crooked smile (the very same smile that had her falling for him in the first place), and it’s a smile that tells her how much she means to him. She hopes he knows she feels the exact same way about him.

Then, just as she’s about to lunge and take the wand, Toffee’s eyes narrow and he focuses all his attention on the human boy. His spell is directed at Marco. 

And it’s a blast Marco would have never been able to dodge; it catches him off guard because he’s too busy trying to memorize how his soulmate looks like before it’s all over, and once the spell has been cast, his body lays on the ground. Lifeless. 

“ _ Marco _ !” She’s running towards him before she can even register anything else. “No! No, no, no, no—”

“Ah, young love,” Toffee comments. “Makes the heart weak, doesn’t it?”

She struggles to even stand. But she has to. For Marco. 

(she thinks of his eyes: warm and brown and always feeling like home. his smile, always comforting and genuine. his bright laugh and the way his cheeks turned the slightest shade of pink. the way he walked with his hands in his jacket pockets, and the way he could never stand wet socks. and then way he looked at her — like she was the shooting star he’d been waiting for his entire life.) 

And Star gets back on her feet again, raises her wand, and shouts out the spell that would haunt Toffee’s soul forever. 

And he’s gone. 

So is Marco. 

Star rushes over to his body again and shouts over and over again. 

Because he was hers all along and she didn’t even know it. 

She was  his soulmate. 

And she caused their story to end. 

**Author's Note:**

> hmu at superishs.tumblr.com!!


End file.
